Question

The Sun emits an enormous of energy in the form of light. Even though the Sun is 150 million kilometers from the Earth, the intensity of sunlight in New York is on average 1300 W/m².

1. [3 points] Determine how much energy is being emitted by the Sun during each second.

As you know, light can be considered an electromagnetic wave; consisting of both an oscillating electric field and an oscillating magnetic field.

2. [6 points] Determine the amplitude of the electric field and the magnetic field inside a ray of sunlight that has an intensity of 1300 W/m².     Note: don’t forget the units!

Amplitude of the electric field:   _________________________   _________

Amplitude of the magnetic field: _________________________ _________

Using two polarizers we can reduce the intensity of the Sunlight, as shown below.

Answer 1